In those known cases in the prior art, a plurality of elongated pipes have been accumulated in a bundle and then tightly secured together with a steel wire or band or the like. This binding method has been widely adopted in the fields of transportation due to its relatively simple process. On the other hand, there are some disadvantages in that the elongated pipes are subjected to possible damages destroying protective coatings by direct contacting with the steel wire. Moreover, since the bundle formed of a plurality of elongated pipes is encircled and tightened by the steel wire which contacts only with some localized or restricted surface portions of each of the outermost disposed elongated pipes, those pipes within the bundle may shift and the bundle is liable to crush or deform during transportation or storage in a stacked condition. Thus the bundle is unstable and therefore unsafe and difficult to handle. Furthermore, in this conventional method, no countermeasures are provided for protecting each of the elongated pipes against bends or dents.
If cans are the articles being packaged, the beads of the cans have a tendency to cause the cans to shift within the package and make an irregular shaped and loose package. Numerous attempts have been made to apply means for maintaining proper alignment through locking devices or separators, and and the like. Such means have proved either very difficult to apply or costly in application. To overcome shifting and deformation of the package, a resilient preformed spacer can be placed between the units in the package.
The means comprises an elongated bar having a plurality of spaced indentations along at least one of the elongated surfaces. The indentations are suitable for receiving the rolls of material. The thickness of the bar adjacent the bottom of the indentations provides sufficient space to protect the rolls. The width of the bar, with respect to its height, provides a self-stabilizing property which prevent tipping. The bar is formed of a material of sufficient flexibility to permit limited relative movement among the rolls of the stack while at the same time being of sufficient strength to prevent crushing of the stack. Expanded polystyrene foam is suitable for use in the supporting and spacing members of the present invention.
The elongated bars, rods, or generally tubular members are placed between the rolls and materials handling apparatus such as a pallet, between the various layers of the stack, and on top of the stack.
According to this prior art the binding device for a plurality of elongated pipes comprises a pair of pipe reception blocks, first and second sleepers interposing the blocks therebetween, and a bundling strap encircling a pair of the pipe reception blocks, and the first and second sleepers. A plurality of elongated pipes are disposed side by side or in transverse arrangement with respect to the longitudinal axes of the pipes each within a space defined by the concavities formed on one surface of the blocks. This assembly is completed and integrated by a tightly encircled bundling strap means along the traverse surface of the assembly. This assembly may be stacked in overlying arrangement with one or more of other similar assemblies.
The pipe reception block may be made of two regions of different material, one being the region where the concavities are formed and the other being the region where the surface contacting with the sleeper is formed. The former region is preferably made of a veneer plywood. The different materials are fixed together with an appropriate adhesive agent. The pipe reception block thus constructed has sufficient mechanical strength to bear against deformation so that it protects the elongated pipes form deformation and also enables to decrease the height of the sleepers which might have otherwise been of a considerable volume so as to withstand the external forces imparted during handling or transportation.
Another prior art device discloses a roll spacing and supporting structure including an elongated bar of expanded foam material, such as polystyrene, for use in palletizing rolls of material and protecting such rolls against damage in handling and shipment. Such elongated bar provides a plurality of spaced semi-cylindrical indentations along at least one of the surfaces for receiving rolls of material. Further, such an elongated bar of expanded foam material includes a plurality of recesses located within or adjacent to the side portions of the semi-cylindrical indentation to provide flexural cushioning. These bars restrict movement among the rolls of the stack while, at the same time, are of sufficient strength to prevent crushing and collapse of the stack. Also disclosed is one embodiment which provides an integral lip along the outside edge of a semi-cylindrical indentation of a supporting bar to protect an otherwise exposed end of a material roll from damage.
In use, the elongated bars may be placed between the bottom layer of rolls and the supporting pallet, between each layer of rolls in the stack, and on top of the stack. In one form of stacking arrangement, each layer contains a number of rolls of material arranged in parallel and axial orientation. The supporting bars may be arranged parallel to one another and spaced apart with the end portions of each roll supported in a semicircular indentation provided by adjacent spaced bars.
The bars located in the interior of a stack as disclosed, receive and support the ends of axially adjacent rolls. In other words, a semi-cylindrical indentation provided by an interiorly located bar may be required to support the end portions of two rolls of material. Movement of the rolls within the stack has been minimized by securing a palletized stack with strapping and stretch wrap film.
The elimination of strapping from a pallet containing a multi-layer stack under certain loading configurations has been found to cause alignment problems within the stack because of vibrations of the type experienced during shipping and handling. Slight movements between the components of the stack may be caused by tilting, jarring, or similar forces encountered in shipping, which might result in either a roll or a supporting bar shifting within the stack. If such movement becomes large enough, the relative axial displacement of a roll may cause it to drop off a supporting bar. Alternatively, such movement may cause the rolls to be pushed together which might cause damage to the roll ends. The invention set forth herein provides a solution to these problems.